Schnarr’s employee Carolyn Hasenfratz Winkelmann is teaching this class again for the first time in three years, and for the first time at Schnarr’s. Make amazing lightweight pendants by transferring found images onto wood. You will be supplied with the materials to make a necklace for wearing your pendants. You will learn the basics of transferring images with tape and gel medium and attaching a clasp to a cord necklace. I will have a selection of transferred images on hand for you to use at the beginning of the class, then while your pendant or pendants are drying, I’ll show you two different techniques for converting found images into beautiful embellishments to add to wood pendants and other art and craft items.

Each class attendee will receive a printout with a written tutorial for that class so if you forget anything we learned you can refer back to it later. Jewelry tools will be available to borrow during the class and some tools and supplies will be available to purchase if you want to continue working on your own.

At each class, there will be at least one door prize randomly awarded to an attendee – probably a craft supply item of some type that relates to the theme of the class. Past prizes have included a necklace kit, a polymer clay frame kit and a craft stencil. That’s my way of saying thank you for coming!

What to Bring
It’s not necessary to bring anything but it’s a good idea to wear old clothes in case there is a glue mishap. If you have found images on glossy papers like magazine or catalog cutouts, or laser printed copies, you can bring those as a source for images.

What’s Provided
I will provide wood pendant blanks, gel medium, images, packing tape, findings and parts for at least one necklace. I will have tools to borrow during class.

Join us at Schnarr’s Hardware in Webster Groves to decorate wood blocks with paint, stencils and mixed media to create fun home decor. Spell out words, make initial blocks. house numbers or dates to enhance a festive occasion. All supplies included.

1. Remove the old hardware from the drawer. You may or may not want to put some of it back on the box later so set the aside for now.

2. Sand the drawer inside and out. This is to give the surface a good “tooth” for paint and glue to adhere to. Wear a dust mask while sanding because you never know what is in old, reused wood. Wipe off the dust with a damp rag.

3. Now it’s time to take a look at your box and think about what you want to display in it. Do you want to set it on a table top or hang it on the wall? What is the look of the room it’s going to be in? Do you want to match the colors or decor in the room? When you have the answers to those questions you can start designing. Here are some pictures of past shadow boxes I have made with descriptions of what I did to give you ideas: Crafts By Carolyn: Shadow Boxes.

I’m going to use my sample shadow box as table decor for my upcoming wedding reception and later I’ll hang it on a wall. So I’m going to give mine a base to stand on as well as hanging hardware on the back. I’m going to paint the inside and the outside of the box to go with my color scheme (navy, coral, lime green and white), add a padded background for pinning small photos, add paper accents to the outside edges of the box with decoupage.

4. If the hardware you removed from your drawer left holes or if there are any other holes or uneven spots in the wood that bother you, if you want you can use wood filler to disguise them before you paint. In my case I like the distressed look and it goes well with the casual nautical theme I’m using so I chose not to fill in any holes in my sample box.

5. Paint your box on all sides and all edges with the exception of the inside back which will be covered. If you are hanging the box on the wall you can also skip painting the back. I’m going to display mine in the round first so I will paint the back.

6. While your paint is drying, you can start to work on your cardboard and fabric background. First measure the opening in your box. Then cut two pieces of corrugated cardboard to that size using a metal ruler, utility knife and self healing cutting mat.

Make sure your paint is dry enough to handle, then slip your cardboard pieces into the box and press them to the back to make sure they fit ok. If they are a little too large, cut them down bit by bit until they fit. Allow for a tiny bit of extra room around the edge to accommodate the fabric wrapping.

7. Select a piece of fabric to wrap the front of your cardboard pieces. Lay one of the cardboard pieces down on the fabric and draw around it with pencil. Add another two inches allowance to each side and draw lines. This is so you have enough fabric to grab onto, pull, and tape. Cut out your fabric along the outer line you just drew.

8. Heat up your glue gun and get your masking tape ready. Put a few dots of hot glue between your two pieces of cardboard and press together. If any sides of your cardboard have printing on them, make sure the printing is toward the inside or the back or it might show through the fabric.

9. If I were not applying hot glue to join this back to the inside back of the box, I would not expect the masking tape to be able to do all of the heavy lifting here in keeping this fabric on the board in the long term, but along with a generous application of the hot glue it will be adequate.

Fold fabric over the back and tape down. Start in the middle of each side and pull in the opposite side as you go and work your way out, pulling tight as you go.

10. You’ll want your hot glue gun nice and hot for this next step so a lot comes out. Apply a generous amount of hot glue around the inside back edge of the box and a little bit in the middle. Press the fabric-wrapped cardboard in good side up and hold for several seconds until the hot glue is holding it flat.

11. Apply decoupage decoration to the outside edges of the box if desired.

Upcoming Class at Schnarr’s: DIY Shadow Box on June 21

It’s easy to turn an old drawer from an unloved piece of furniture into an attractive and functional shadow box that fits your decor. Learn how from artist and designer Carolyn Hasenfratz at Schnarr’s Hardware in Webster Groves. Most materials are included, including the drawer. If you want metal feet on your box we have some along with some extra decorative hardware available for purchase.

Schnarr’s Hardware is now offering DIY Classes!

I hope you can join us for our first class at Schnarr’s Hardware in Webster Groves – Make a Picture Frame from Scrap Wood!

Schnarr’s employee Carolyn Hasenfratz will show you how to use reclaimed wood pieces to make a frame that fits an 8 1/2 x 11-inch picture. This size frame is a good size for award certificates and other common documents that you might want to display. Tools and materials will be provided. You will learn techniques that you can use to design and build your own frames from your choice of wood scraps. Save a ton of money by gaining skills you can use by making your own unique frames for your home decor while gaining the satisfaction of saving materials from the landfill.

What You Can Expect
Learn to build simple picture frames
Learn to design frames from reclaimed wood
Learn to fabricate hardware for the back of the frame using simple tools
Learn how to recycle wood pieces
Learn about sources of low cost reclaimed materials for your DIY projects